Kauai Real Estate Update- Last week we only had 13 listings that came on the market and of those 3 are in escrow already and 1 sold before it was listed. Some good activity with properties going under contract and selling, the bulk of them being under $1 million. For a complete list on what Sold, went Under Contract and the New Listings on the island last week click here: Kauai Real Estate Activity September 25th to October 1, 2023
Poipu Beach Real Estate Update- At this time there are only 2 fee simple listings under $1 million in Poipu. To see the year to date real estate activity click here: Poipu Beach Fee Simple Current Market Analysis
Kiahuna Plantation Real Estate Update- For a complete update on the Kiahuna Plantation since the first of this year click here: Kiahuna Plantation Current Market Analysis
What Are Buyers Waiting For? National Association of Realtors Has Some Insight
Buyers are back to sitting on the fence and there is a reason for this. According to a poll done by the National Association of Realtors (NAR) Buyers are waiting for the prices to drop and/or interest rates to drop. In keeping with those sentiments, the Realtors that were polled said they see three reasons why buyers are waiting to buy: 1) not enough homes in buyers price range 2) buyers wanting prices to drop 3) buyers waiting for interest rates to drop.
This is in keeping with what I see in our Kauai market and the data shows it as well. For the first 9 months of 2022 there were 181 homes that sold on Kauai under 1 Million, compare that to the first 9 months of 2023 only 85 homes sold. Given there are only 19 active listings on Kauai that are under 1 million we see that there are buyers, just not the inventory in their price range.
Are prices going to drop? Price reductions have been happening but not universally as we saw in the past and this market is nothing like the past. Two key differences from now and the last crash: Sellers have a low interest rate they don’t want to let go of and the rental market is red hot. Why should they sell when their interest rates are in the 2’s and 3’s? Also, we don’t have enough rentals, Sellers are 100% in the driver’s seat on this.
Will Interest Rates Drop? The Feds stated in their last meeting that they may drop them in 2024. But if they do will it be enough? If it does I don’t believe the rate drop will align with what the Buyers are hoping for, I do believe it will help with consumer confidence.
Staycation At The Royal Hawaiian Hotel
My hubby and I did a 4 day staycation and spent it at the Royal Hawaiian Hotel to relax and visit my uncle and aunt who moved to the North Shore of Oahu.
The Royal Hawaiian is my happy place, it was built in 1927 and we always book in the historic section of the hotel. In the very middle of Waikiki it is an oasis and a bit of a time capsule, it’s very easy to see how people traveled to Hawaii back then. A couple of tips if you go: we choose not to get a car except for a day to drive to the North Shore. You can rent a car at Avis which is at the Sheraton Waikiki, easy walking distance from the Royal. They have limited hours at their Avis counter but you can return after hours, no problem.
Take the Historic Tour. This is free and they do them every Tuesday and Thursday at 1 p.m., you don’t have to be a guest at the hotel to attend, you can call the Royal and sign up. I try to take the tour every time I go, I always learn some new fun fact about how life was back then and how the hotel came to be.
Life Is Short, Rent The Cabana. One day we dedicated to the pool and beach so we opted to rent a cabana. The cabana is roomy, ample shade, somewhat private, has a little refrigerator and some snacks. We opted to have lunch there and I had the Royal Acai Bowl and the hubby had a Lobster Roll with Taro Chips. The cabanas are by the pool and a short walk to the beach, super convenient location.
Kauai Real Estate Update Year To Date 2023 vs 2022
It’s the beginning of October and we’re looking at how home sales did for the first 9 months in 2023 compared to this same time last year. When pulling the data, I saw something really interesting; despite a decrease in home sales island-wide, it's noteworthy that the median price for some areas on Kauai has shown stability for the first time in 2023. The persistent shortage of inventory has made it challenging to get an accurate read on the Median Price, so it’s quite remarkable that despite the limited number of new listings, which for that part of our market has remained unchanged, we’re seeing the needle move a bit in the positive direction on the Median Price.
For condominiums the prices continue to climb with the areas that have the most vacation rental condos; the South and North Shore, performing the best. Despite the large number of leasehold condominium properties that the South Shore has they still performed the best which is impressive.
Below is a graph of the real estate activity on Kauai Year To Date, this graph is general in nature and might not reflect your area of interest. You are welcome to contact me for more specific information.
